Like many other reviewers, I started this new Young Avengers after having reading the original by Allen Heinberg. The original- and I know it gets a fair deal of praise but I can’t help it- was excellent. The writing was strong and unique, the characters were all diverse, interesting and established in a timely pace (and you were able to become fond of them, too!) and it all just seemed to mesh together fluidly. Jim Cheung’s beautiful artwork certainly helped make the original a story worth reading.This? This comic fell short of the quality that the first incarnation brought to the table.The writing was trying very hard to be ‘pop-culture’ infused. It made all these references to Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones and whatever else- it was supposed to be cute and relatable, but came off awkward and detached from the bizarre situations occurring. The characters, unlike Heinberg’s, were written as flimsy skeletons of what they used to be. Billy- who was recovering from depression at the end of Children’s Crusade- seems to have suddenly become weaker and naive- his powers are made to be extremely difficult to control and are only shown …. I think maybe twice, but it was hard to tell if he was using them or if he was pretending to use them because the plot became convoluted with the introduction of **~ULTRA POWERFUL~** magic-using Kid-Loki. Teddy, Billy’s previously witty and optimistic boyfriend, somehow lost his personality and is portrayed as the heroic (??) puppy-love sidekick to the great and powerful Wiccan… who isn't great and powerful at all; they both seemed to have the interesting parts stripped from them for this book (Why all of the sudden whining between Billy and Teddy? The abrupt gush of teenage drama felt out of character.). As with Billy, Teddy’s powers seemed to have been watered down to the point of being entirely negligible (except for a bit at the start of the comic when he uses his ability to mimic Spiderman- that was rather interesting) I was really disappointed with Teddy’s personage in this version, he’s treated as a papery extension of Wiccan by everyone- except Kid-Loki, and that’s only for a single page.Kid-Loki- I didn’t like his character. I have a bias, because I don’t like Loki in general, but he seemed terribly overpowered in this book. Literally, every conflict was solved… by Loki. The ‘Young Avengers’ didn’t even need to be there for the entire second half- he could’ve just fixed everything himself. But no! Plot, or something! He needed to be there to shoot ‘witty’ remarks and provide humor I guess? He was somewhat interesting, because the book kept hinting that he had some greater evil purpose in the future plot, but really? His interactions could’ve been done in a much more consistent, less silly way. Miss America was a character I was looking forward to, not only because she’s a stylishly designed melee fighter from parallel earth, but because she was coming in a similar vein as my personal favorite Young Avenger, Patriot. I thought she’d take up his position as leader of the new team, but unfortunately, most of what she did in this book was look angry and yell at Kid Loki. She was terribly forgettable, and what were her powers? Punching? She likes punching… she kept saying she did, anyway. And Kate and Noh-Varr. They… they did some fighting? That was all, really. Kate wasn’t really involved with anything having to do with the main conflict. Kate and Marvel Boy sleep together (Why would she do that after him being her enemy when the YA fought him off in Civil War? We just don’t know! Thanks for leaving that part out, writers.) and afterword some Skrulls come to attack for no reason and suddenly she assists Billy and Co. in dispatching the main enemy of the book. I did actually like Marvel Boy’s characterization here, but he felt just as empty as all the other characters when it came down to where and why he was there. The best scene involving him and Kate is when she’s watching him dance half naked during their introduction (yes, it’s as weird as it sounds) and I only enjoyed said scene because of the sheer novelty of it- it’s totally out of character for both of them. Finally, I just don’t like McKelvie’s art. His style is very ‘pop’ and the use of color was eye-catching, but all of the characters and expressions were just not tastefully drawn in my opinion. The art was a bit too consistent at times (he seems to favor everyone having similar facial structure) and the poses were awkward for most (Noh-Varr was a big victim of this, along with Teddy and Billy) which made the read… more difficult, for me. All in all, the story was mediocre and the new team was flimsy at best. I don’t like where it’s going from the start, and I find myself wishing it was Heinberg and Cheung that had continued this rather than Gillen and McKelvie. I do plan on reading the next volumes, though, because I’m curious about what they manage to do to Speed and Prodigy (characters introduced later, and one character having never been in YA before).I wouldn’t recommend this comic to people looking to find something remotely as enjoyable as Heinberg’s Young Avengers. It just isn’t up to par with the original. Gillen and McKelvie are frequent collaborators, and they work well together. In Young Avengers, they're clearly having fun. Gillen's writing is as sharp as ever, full of witty dialogue and memorable lines, but also infusing plenty of feels. ("I wish I was a better person" is particularly heartwrenching.) McKelvie's art is fantastic - he crafts a world full of beautiful people, and very expressive faces. Each issue also includes at least one innovative, often mind-blowing layout. The book is titled "Style > Substance," and that was, admittedly, part of the mission statement, but I feel like it's a bit more complex than that - the style is part of the substance, and the substance is made stylish.Regardless, it's a great series, and it got off to a great start with these first issues.
What do You think about Style > Substance (2013)?
It's more of 3.5 almost 4 stars. I liked the artwork and writing.
—Charlize
